City of death
by Shadowspeed2020
Summary: After being lured to Necropolis,the the fifth getekeeper slowly discovers who she really is.As Highspeed and Ashley struggle to find her,they learn more about themselves than they ever thought possible.
1. Arrival

It might have all been planned, but now that she was on her own, April wondered if it had been such a good idea. After Highspeed had left for Hong Kong, she'd went over to the apartment to find Shadowspeed, Nightshade and Nightbird standing looking at note from Highspeed. It told them why Highspeed had left, and also said that they had to find the other four gatekeepers. As if it was arranged, two boys and a young man had entered the room. The boys were two of the gatekeepers, Matt and Jamie, who had come in search of Scarlett. They explained how they had come so close to finding her, but how an accident had prevented this from happening. They had been shown the note, and told the four of them all about the Old Ones. When they had finished, they tried to come up with a plan to help Highspeed find Scarlett. In the end, they decided it was too dangerous for two of the chosen ones to be in the same city, and if Matt or Jamie went, they would be playing right into the Old Ones hands. It was then that everyone realized how large a part April had to play in all this. She was the only one there who didn't have any powers that the Old Ones could detect. After the plan was decided, Shadowspeed contacted Alan Blunt who had somehow been told all about the current situation. He agreed with the idea. It was all decided.

April would be taken to Australia and smuggled into Hong Kong on a ship carrying thousands of metal containers. The Australian secret service were a little hesitant, but understood what was at stake. She was now halfway to Hong Kong, completely on her own. Before she'd left, she'd been given experimental gadgets to compensate for her lack of powers. She had gloves that allowed her to fire electrical discharges and use artificial telekinesis. She also had a special blade given to her by Shadowspeed. He said the blade could extend, and that she could change its shape to suit her needs. She'd experimented with it on the journey, finally falling asleep. It was freezing inside the container, and she wasn't allowed to leave until they'd docked in Hong Kong. She'd been given a backpack that had everything she needed to survive, including a blanket for the journey. She thought about what she'd do once she arrived. She'd been given some money, but she knew it mightn't last long. The second problem was finding either Highspeed or Scarlett. Highspeed would be hardest to find since he'd be travelling the entire city. She'd decided to let Highspeed find her, since they were bound to cross paths eventually. Besides, she'd been given Scarlett's new address, and she would go there first.

She was woken by something hitting the container from the outside. She got up to feel the container moving. There was nothing below it, so she thought the container might be slipping a little. There was another crash from the door, so she grabbed the gloves, which had half cut off of each finger. On the back of it was a small orb, which served to absorb electricity for the gloves to use. She knew there was someone there, trying to break in. She heard a voice shout in to her _"Come on out here, and I might have mercy on you."_ She knew it might be Scorpia, since she was warned they might come after her, and she was ready for him. She outstretched her arm, letting the orb gather the energy from the air. She concentrated, firing a bolt of lightning at the door, which struck the man with enough electric charge to get the message, she was armed, and she was very dangerous. The man ran to an escape boat and left, heading towards a small island. April looked outside, seeing it was pouring with rain. She knew they would be arriving at Hong Kong soon, and then that would be where her troubles would begin.

She had fallen asleep, and was in the middle of a strange dream. She stood before a small army of strange, unworldly creatures. She knew that they were part of the Old Ones forces, and they were all moving towards her. She looked to see something huge move towards her from underground. She didn't want to see any of this, and wished she could just wake up. She suddenly felt something grow from her back, what looked like dragon wings, and watched as a strange symbol started to form on the back of her hand. It looked like a storm cloud, and it was blood red in colour. She suddenly felt a surge of power and as she looked towards the Old Ones, she raised her arm, unleashing an endless inferno on them. She watched as they tried to run from the flames. She fell forward as the power left her, and heard a voice that sounded close to her own say softly _"Embrace your true nature, and never be afraid to unleash the true power within you,"_ and with that, she woke up, feeling the container rising into the air. She knew she had arrived in Hong Kong, and was already putting the dream out of her mind. But she still couldn't ignore what had happened, about how she wished she was awake and suddenly had dragon wings and the strange symbol. What she didn't realise was that when she'd wished she could wake up, she had done so in a way she hadn't expected.

The moment the container touched the ground, the doors opened and April ran out as fast as she could, firing lightning bolts to unlock the gates. The crew had been in on the plan, and had created a distraction nearby. She ran through the city streets, dodging pedestrians as they made their way home. She only caught glimpses of the neon signs above her. She was running to get as far away from the harbour as she could, knowing the Old Ones would notice the distraction. As she ran, she became aware of someone following her. She thought she was just thinking things after being inside the container for what felt like days. She turned a corner, gasping when she saw a black cloud moving towards her. She knew that it was a swarm of flies that were part of the Old One's forces, and they had seen her. She ran down the street, the swarm right behind her. She heard them buzzing behind her, knowing they were getting closer. She heard something, looking up to see a shadow in the mist. It looked human, but that was all she could make out before it disappeared from view. Without knowing, she'd turned into an alley and was now staring at a wall. She turned round, seeing the swarm were preparing to attack her. She didn't know why, but she looked beyond the flies, seeing someone standing at the alley's entrance. He looked a little different, but she was glad to see him nonetheless. She watched as he leapt over the swarm and drew a staff, leaping towards the cloud and dispersing it. The flies prepared to unite and attack, dashing towards the figure. April had noticed another swarm coming towards them, and was using lightning to shock the insects. The figure had noticed the second swarm, and had turned round to strike.

Thought the flies were individual creatures, the fact they were close enough to look like a cloud made it easy for the figure to telekinetically grab them, making them glow a ghostly blue. April had seen all this happen, and was now using the gloves' other power, artificial telekinesis. The flies were surrounded in a strange black energy, rendering them defenceless. She moved forward, standing beside the one who was helping her. They made both swarms merge, a combination of black energy and a ghostly blue glow. They both concentrated, gathering whatever energy they could, and finally throwing the flies with such force that it felt like a brick wall, and they could both feel the shockwave. Now that they were alone, April looked over the person who'd helped save her life. His hair was a mixture of dark blue, brown and a silver-grey colour, and was spiked like Sonic the Hedgehog. The spikes were a little longer, moving freely as a breeze caught them. He also had a scar on his right eye that, if you could see the right way, looked like shattered gem fragments. Despite all these differences, the boy said to her in a voice that had the distinct air of overconfidence "So, looks like you've learned some new moves since I last saw you." The boy was Highspeed, and he had been hiding right under the Old Ones' noses for a long time.


	2. Wisdom Court

For a brief moment, Highspeed and April stood in the alley while April told him all about how she got here, how she was sent to help him. Highspeed listened without interrupting, surprised that MI6 helped in this problem. He was also surprised by the fact everything had gone quiet outside the alley, no-one in sight as he looked behind him. Instead, all he saw was something moving through the mist. He couldn't make out more than one thing, and that was that the shadow was far from being human. April saw the shadow too, and Highspeed looked to her saying "Hope you have a gadget that helps you keep up with me," and started running down the street with April close behind him. The shadow started moving closer with the sound of hooves. Though they were far enough away, the shadowed creature had heard them and was now searching the alley, trying to find anything that would indicate where they might go, or even who they were.

Highspeed had made his home at a place called Wisdom Court. As they walked up the driveway to what looked like a fancy apartment building, with two stone lions that looked as if they were roaring by the entrance. As they walked inside, April was about to ask how Highspeed had managed to afford to stay here, when Highspeed suddenly grabbed her by the arm and had taken her behind a wall. She was about to ask why, but a lift door opened and out of it came a woman, and large man and a girl. April recognised the girl immediately as Scarlett, and was about to shout to her, but Highspeed glared at her, as if he knew what she wanted to do. As Scarlett left, the two of them came out of their hiding place, heading for the lift. Highspeed pushed one of the buttons, taking them up to the twelfth floor. He led them to one of the rooms, which to April was surprisingly clean, but then again, Highspeed had only been here a couple of weeks on his own. She sat down on one of the chairs, waiting for Highspeed to explain everything.

Highspeed grabbed another chair and sat down, ready to explain everything that had happened to him when he arrived at Hong Kong. "I think the best place to start would be that news report of something super fast travelling across countries in a matter of minutes. That was me, trying to get to Hong Kong in time to find Scarlett, but by the time I found her, she was already here at Wisdom Court, living here with that man and woman we saw leave with her. I live here because, conveniently, this room is right next to hers, meaning I can make sure she's safe. You see, that man and women are two of the Old Ones known as shape-changers, and since she's the fifth gatekeeper, there must be a reason why they're keeping her here. Sometimes I wish I could just go over and help her to escape, but I know that there may be other Old Ones nearby, ready to act if she escapes."

That night, April had a similar dream to the one she had while she was on her way to Hong Kong. This time, she was running from something that was laughing evilly with each step she took. She turned a corner, seeing a group of strange lizards that appeared to be made from purple lava and rock. She was about to keep running when one of the lizards breathed out a blast of black flames right at her. She dodged it, about to turn and run, but her way was blocked by similar monsters. She looked around, seeing monsters surrounding her. She then noticed someone, a person, standing in front of her. He looked like Shadowspeed, only where Shadowspeed had red in his hair, this guy had grey stripes and green eyes. He was standing between the monsters and April, almost as if he was keeping them at bay. He looked to April with through eyes that looked empty and emotionless, saying "So you're the one Win Mai's spirit and abilities have chosen. I must say, you're almost a splitting image of her. But let's see if you can fight like her," and with that, he became consumed by shadows, melting into the floor. With him gone, the creatures came at her from all sides, threatening to swallow her in a sea of purple lava, when she leapt into the air. She landed just outside the ocean of creatures, ready to run, when the symbols appeared on the back of her hands, the same blood red lightning cloud symbols as before. She looked as the dragon wings formed on her back again. She faced the creatures as they all prepared to leap at her. As they moved into the air, she gathered her thoughts and called forth a wall of water that obliterated the creatures, extinguishing the lava and turning them into statues. She almost smiled. The power she had felt was like nothing she'd ever felt before. She felt as if there were no limits, as though she could take on anything.

She looked over the statues that had tried to kill her, seeing the last glows of lava harden to rock. She was about to continue on her way until she saw him again, the guy she'd seen before the creatures had attacked her, his empty green eyes staring at her. She was about to ignore him and keep walking, when suddenly, there was a figure standing right in front of her, his hand grabbing her throat. She tried to break free, kicking at what felt like nothing. The figure tightened his grasp, making it harder to breathe. She felt her strength flowing out of her like water from a drain. She fell unconscious, while the figure dropped her on the ground, looking as she landed in a heap. She was still able to hear the figure say in what felt like a fading whisper "So powerful yet such a fragile thing. So very fragile," and with that, she woke up suddenly, looking around to find that she still in Wisdom Court, still lying on one of the couches. Highspeed hadn't heard her wake up, still sleeping a little restlessly. She looked to the back of her hands, seeing the same symbols from her dreams. She didn't understand any of this, but she knew she had to tell Highspeed as soon as possible. She lay down, staying wide awake until the sound of rain outside helped put her to sleep.

As the night went on, the rain fell on the tallest peak outside the city. The rain was heavy, but that didn't stop someone from standing there, looking out over the city with eyes that gave nothing away, but hid a conflict in his mind. He was a teenager, appearing to be around fourteen. His hair was black, spiked like Shadow the Hedgehog, only there were stripes of grey around the spikes. His name was Mephiles, and he was someone whose face showed he had been through a lot. He watched as neon flashed and lights in buildings went off. He watched as ships made their way through the waters and ominous mist. As he watched all this, he thought to himself _"All these people having to die so painfully. What does it accomplish? All it leaves is a lifeless husk of what was once a thriving city. Why try to destroy the world when we can offer it no better than pain and suffering? I don't know what to believe anymore." _ He walked away, glancing back over his shoulder as the rain faded the city out of view with each step he took.


	3. Pursuit

After a few days at Wisdom Court, Highspeed and April started to get bored easily, usually sitting around for hours without thinking of anything to do. Even combat practice started to get dull, since there were few chances to actually use what they knew. They always loved when they could go outside and stretch their legs, usually blending in with the crowd. Today, they had attracted a swarm of flies, running through the crowded streets trying to get away. As they came to an old building, they found one of the doors open. Without thinking, they ran inside, greeted by several men with guns. Highspeed looked to the men, then back to the flies that were closing in. Every man in front of them had their guns raised, pointing right at the two of them. April leaned towards Highspeed, whispering "A group of men in front of us, and a swarm of killer bugs behind us." Highspeed was about to say something, but the flies had entered the building, causing the men to open fire. As the two of them ducked for cover, Highspeed commented "Oh goody, double jeopardy," and grabbed his staff. April armed her gloves, both of them dashing through machine gun fire to find who was in charge. Not seeing anyone taking obvious command, Highspeed allowed his true form to shine through. His hair grew longer, some of it covering the eye with the scar, and became more silver and light blue. The spines on his back formed, and the symbols returned on his hands. He had completely transformed, causing some of the men to stop firing.

His symbols started glowing ghostly blue as he telekinetically grabbed the flies. He threw them against one of the walls, and then threw them outside with the force of a strong wind. The men emerged from cover, seeing him standing there. One of them stepped forward, appearing to be the one in charge. Highspeed turned round, looking him in the eye. The man spoke "Thank you for your help. I am Lohan, leader of the resistance against the Old Ones here in Hong Kong. And you are?" "Just call me Highspeed, and this is my friend April. If you're fighting the Old Ones, then you're going to be looking for Scarlett." Lohan stared at him, surprised he had mentioned Scarlett's name. He looked to his men, telling them to be on guard for more Old Ones who might try to attack. He turned back to Highspeed and April, saying calmly "I think it's time to let you in on our plan."

The next day, Highspeed and April stood waiting at the car park of one of Hong Kong's favourite viewpoints. They had been told the plan on how to get Scarlett away from her shape-changer bodyguards. Highspeed had been a little annoyed about what the plan involved, especially at how they were to act as distraction for any police who were bound to show up. April was just as nervous, for she had the difficult job of being distraction with Highspeed, which meant that she had to hope police didn't show up. The two of them heard a scream, and Highspeed was instantly alert, recognising the scream as Scarlett's. He also noticed police were already starting to show up, and it wasn't just the coincidental single car. It was a whole squadron, heading for where the scream had come from. Highspeed and April waited, moving in front of the cars as they sped up the mountain road. The police, instead of continuing, stopped and got out of their cars, weapons drawn. They may have had to recapture Scarlett, but they had also been told to capture Highspeed and April if they saw them. They moved towards them, forcing them closer to the edge of a cliff. April looked behind her, watching as two small rocks fell to earth. A gun fired, a bullet flying past April's head. She had moved to the side, but had lost her balance, falling down to the ground below. All Highspeed could do was watch as she plummeted faster and faster.

She gathered her thoughts as she fell, thinking about all the things that had happened. The men who had chased her and everything after that. She then thought about the way she'd met Highspeed and the others, remembering how they all had symbols on their hands. That was what made her think about the dreams, how she had beaten countless enemies with the slightest of ease. That was when she remembered the voice that had said _"Embrace your true nature, and never be afraid to unleash the true power within you," _and felt a surge of power. She looked to her hands, seeing the symbols appear again. As she'd hoped, the dragon wings had appeared on her back. She opened them, letting them stop her from falling. She felt power like nothing she had ever felt before rushing through her veins. She heard another gunshot, flying up as fast as she could. As she flew past the area Highspeed and the police were in a standoff, her wings created a strong wind that gathered their attention, making them look up as she flew over them. Grinning, Highspeed said confidently "To quote that song by SR 71. Goodbye, so long...." and jumped over the edge as the officers fired, then shouted "Nice try," and levitated himself behind them, saying smugly "I'm gone," and dashed away at full speed. The police scrambled back into their cars, giving chase almost immediately.

As he ran down the mountain, Highspeed saw April flying beside him. She came close enough for Highspeed to say "Any wonder we keep having to team up, that symbol means that you're one of the chosen ones. If that's the case......." he was briefly cut off by one of the police officers firing towards them. "Then let's see what little surprises you have in those wings," he finished, dashing away. Though still getting used to her powers, April found it easy to keep up with him. The police kept them in their sight, not about to be beaten by a pair of children. Highspeed looked back, seeing the police cars getting closer. It didn't worry him, for he had a plan that was sure to leave the police in his dust. He spotted a bridge nearby, going across a wide river that lay before him. April saw a familiar look in his eye, knowing he was up to something. She saw cars come flying towards him, completely oblivious to the chase that was unfolding. Highspeed saw them too, but afternoon traffic never bothered him. He weaved between cars and vans, with police watching from clear lanes. _"Man, I don't think anyone could show off as much as Highspeed, even Sonic the Hedgehog himself,"_ April thought as Highspeed leapt on top of an oncoming lorry and leapt onto any vehicles behind it, dashing across them as if they were stepping stones. The bridge was in his sights, and nothing was going to stand in his way. April saw why, the bridge was across to the other part of the city, and would be the only opportunity to escape police. She looked back to Highspeed, who had cleared the traffic. The police were right behind him, and the bridge was only a few metres away. She flew in close enough to hear Highspeed say "Time to go Sonic Unleashed."

The moment they moved onto the bridge, every nearby police officer watched, mouths agape, as Highspeed seemed to go impossibly fast. Though they couldn't see him, they saw the effects he made in his wake, a powerful wind threatening to blow anything that tried to pursue him. They had also noticed April fly close to him as he accelerated, thinking she would be blown away. They were sadly mistaken, for she was gliding along the wind that followed in Highspeed's wake. She felt incredible, moving faster than any living thing. She felt the wind blowing through her hair, adding to the fun of moving so fast. She looked back at Highspeed, who had been responsible for all this excitement. He wasn't even trying, but she knew that he had run across two continents to get here and could also outrun Air Force One if he wanted to. For the first time, she was feeling the very thing Highspeed felt every time he went for a run, and now she knew why.


	4. Spirits unite

Having escaped and left the police in the dust, April looked to Highspeed, who hadn't slowed down, saying "We escaped the police ages ago, why are you still running fast enough to level the city with turbulence?" Highspeed glanced to her nervously "Because this is the same speed I reached when I travelled to this city, and back then I couldn't stop as fast as I ran?" and looked towards something that looked like the London Eye, running around the wheel and leaping off as he came halfway up one of the sides. April had tried to follow him, but when she flew out, her wings caught on one of the beams, forcing her to glide along Highspeed's turbulence. As they started to descend, the two of them looked forward, seeing a building blocking their path. As they came closer to the roof, Highspeed mumbled "Oh boy, this is going to hurt," and the two of them hit the roof, bouncing once and skidding a little too close to the edge. As they picked themselves up, April looked to Highspeed angrily "You didn't tell me about this because?" and looked down to the street below. Highspeed looked down, replying "It may have slipped my mind a little, but at least this time we didn't fly off the building and have to levitate in mid-fall," and with that, noticed something that he didn't expect.

Though it looked like a hearse travelling to a funeral, the two of them knew that it was really being used as a way of getting Scarlett to safety, but there was a problem. A giant condor was following it, its wings just barely missing the buildings on either side. It looked as if it was going to destroy anything in its path, but it was really after Scarlett, somehow sensing she was there. As she looked back up, April didn't get the chance to say anything, for Highspeed had just leapt from the roof, diving towards the condor. She opened her wings, flying after them. Highspeed had landed on the condor's back with ease but still found it hard to hold on. It hadn't noticed him, so he grabbed one of the feathers, using it to move towards the head. He stopped next to the creature's neck, starting to glow ghostly blue. The condor brought its head down to attack the hearse, but Highspeed had leapt in front of it and tossed his staff at its head. It screeched as Highspeed moved close to one of the skyscrapers, running along the wall. The condor prepared to attack, but April threw something at it to get its attention, using her wings to help her run along the wall of the building opposite to Highspeed's. The condor watched as the two of them leapt from building to building, criss-crossing across busy streets. As they leapt for the last time, the two of them seemed to slow down as they passed the condor's head. As they did so, Highspeed and April unleashed what looked like blue flames, causing the creature to screech. There were police below, and the condor knocked the two of them to the ground as it flew away.

Before they hit the ground, Highspeed and April managed to regain enough balance to fly, dashing through the busy street. As they dodged gunfire from police, they flew into a swarm of flies. As they flew between buildings, the flies tried to bite and sting them. As one of them bit April's arm, she said "I've had enough of these little bugs. Time for some pest control," and with that, she unleashed a blast of flames, setting the insects alight. Highspeed looked back, not knowing what to say. He looked back in time to feel something grab him. He saw another swarm of flies in front of him, forming the shape of a hand. They tightened their grip, making as if to crush him, but he felt something surge through him, what felt like some kind of strange sensation. His eyes started glowing a bright blue, and he gathered whatever energy he could to surround him. When he felt strong enough, he unleashed a wave of ghostly blue energy, causing the flies to disperse. As April joined him, they both flew towards the docks, knowing that the hearse would have gotten Scarlett there by now.

That night, they arrived at the specified warehouse, a place used to store fireworks. They walked in, finding Lohan and another man standing near one of the crates, glancing back to Scarlett, who was fast asleep after all that had happened. Before Highspeed could run over and wake her up, Lohan said quietly "I think that after all that's happened, it would be best to let her sleep. After all, you both have powers that might need to be replenished, so I think you need rest just as badly." Highspeed nodded, levitating himself over to one of the crates, falling asleep almost instantly. April looked to Lohan, unsure how he could have known about her powers. She was about to ask, but simply ignored the idea, guessing he must have known because of the wings on her back. She walked over to a crate, laying down and falling asleep immediately. For that night, her dreams didn't return, meaning she had the best night's sleep since she arrived in Hong Kong.

The next morning, Highspeed and April awoke to the sound of something outside the warehouse. They looked around, knowing it was the middle of the day, and that they had missed Scarlett and Lohan leave. The sound from outside grew louder, becoming recognisable as someone shouting. Highspeed and April leapt down from their "beds" and stood ready to fight. The doors burst open, and immediately smoke filled the room. Highspeed looked around, completely lost in the thick black smoke that surrounded him. He heard something behind him, turning round to be received by an electric shock in the back, causing him to fall to the ground unconscious. His strength left him, and the last thing he could hear was someone say triumphantly _"So this is the chosen one known as Ancient. How pathetic he chose someone so weak and powerless,"_ and after that, he could see, hear and feel nothing.

At the same time, a storm was making its way towards Hong Kong, a devastating force of a typhoon. But with it, something else was travelling towards Hong Kong, two spirits from times forgotten. These spirits belonged to Ancient and Win Mai, two of the chosen ones who had extraordinary power. As the storm moved closer to Hong Kong, so did the two spirits, moving to Hong Kong faster than light._ "So, it will soon be time for the final battle to begin. Let us hope our current selves can find Scar in time,"_ Win Mai said as they flew through clouds and over continents. _"They'll find her, but not without our help. They may be discovering their powers, but they still need to master them. And need I remind you that within my current self, Demon is getting close to awakening. If he cannot be conquered, then we may have problems bigger than Chaos himself,"_ Ancient replied, seeing Win Mai smile a little. _"In all this time, this is the least like yourself you have ever been,"_ she replied, watching as Ancient flew past her saying _"In that case, let's have a little race, just like old times,"_ and with that, the two spirits dashed through the night sky, racing each other as they did in times of old.


	5. Fury of a Nightmare

After being shocked by a police ambush, April had woken up to find herself in some kind of small room made almost entirely of stone, with a single naked light bulb lighting the room. She looked around, thinking she was alone, but heard a low moan. Turning round, she saw Highspeed lying there, his skin had turned a little pale, but he still looked the same as always. She looked towards the door, seeing no window to look through, but instead looked to the lock. It needed a key to open, but she knew someone who could open it. She went over to Highspeed, trying to wake him up. He only moaned, still appearing too weak to do anything. April went back to the door, trying to kick it down. As she took another kick, the door opened and one of the police officers left a bowl of something on the floor. She looked down as he closed the door, guessing that this was breakfast. She took a small taste, almost spitting it out again. "Ugh.....how do they make something so disgusting," she said as she picked it up, ready to throw it at the door. She was about to throw it, but she considered that if the Old Ones were holding them prisoner, this might be the only food for days. She set it down again, lying down on the stone floor and trying to rest. If they were going to escape, she would either need to master her new powers, or keep them as powerful as possible.

That night, Highspeed was lost in his dreams, constantly falling through what felt like an endless pit. He wanted to wake up, but knew that he mightn't like what he saw if he did. It felt as though there was nothing left for him in his mind, as if he had been falling for his entire life with no end. He looked around, expecting to see nothing. He was surprised to see April, falling alongside him. He tried to shout to her, but no words came as a light surrounded them. At the same time, a voice said _"It is time for you to unleash the primitive power inside you, for you need it now more than ever,"_ and with that, Highspeed started to feel power flowing through him. Though he hadn't woken up, a transformation was taking place, his hands and feet becoming claws, his body becoming more feral in its appearance, with the wings and tail of a dragon. At the same time, April was also going through a similar change, her body becoming more dragon like, with large, torn wings and a long, whip like tail. When the transformation was complete, they had become creatures that, if the Old Ones knew fear, would make them have nightmares. Highspeed had become Nightmare, and April had become Fury, two creatures feared by the Old Ones since they walked the earth.

Though a plan had been prepared to rescue Scarlett, Highspeed and April, Lohan had been aware them might be other forces at play. For one, a storm had blown in long after the storm season had gone by. There was also something about the moon, the way that on this one particular night it was burning through the mist and the storm. Something was about to happen, and he had a feeling about who it might involve. Matt and Jamie, two of the other gatekeepers had joined them, along with their guardian, Richard. Lohan knew that something was about to happen, not something to go wrong with the plan, but an unexpected twist that might prove helpful.

The guards were starting to panic, all of them drawing their weapons as they stood in front of one particular cell. Some were guarding Scarlett's cell, but something had made most of them gather outside Highspeed and April's cell. At first, they thought it was just one of them trying to kick the door open, but then dents started to appear, created by something with incredible strength. Not only that, there had been an unworldly screech and a classic feral growl. As they aimed their weapons at the door as claw marks started to appear. Suddenly, everything was silent, deathly silent. The officers thought that whatever it was had grown too tired to continue. After a few seconds, some of them started to return to their posts, thinking all this was for nothing. As sudden as the silence, the door exploded towards the wall, taking two officers with it. All who were nearby aimed into the cloud of dust, seeing two shapes emerging. One of them looked like a strange feral creature, having dark blue fur with streak of silver, with deep, night blue eyes and large dark blue wings. The other was a dragon like creature, with black and blood red skin, black wings and blood red eyes. The officers couldn't believe their eyes, and this lapse of focus was going to be their downfall, for they were looking at Nightmare and Fury, to creatures from Old One's nightmares.

Almost at once, the Nightmare had leapt on the nearest guard, forcing him to the ground before ripping him to shreds. He then turned on two others, not even taking a scratch from their gunfire. He leapt on one of them, using his long, dragon tail to knock the second into a wall with incredible force, breaking every bone in the guard's body. Meanwhile, Fury was facing several guards in front of her, with two others behind her ready for a sneak attack. She swung her tail, knocking the guards behind her and then used her wings to strike each guard in front of her, almost slicing each of them in half. As more guards joined the fight, Fury, heavily outnumbered, backed into a wall, with several guards pointing a gun in her direction. One of them fired, making her screech and breathe a red hot inferno from her mouth, incinerating the guards to nothing. As she looked to more guards tried to surround her, Nightmare sliced them to ribbons with his powerful, knife like claws. He was standing on his two back legs, cutting into guards as if they were nothing. They may have been human a few minutes ago, but Highspeed and April had allowed beast instincts to take over, turning them into an unstoppable force.

After a few minutes, guards stopped arriving in squads, either because they were busy elsewhere, or because they had heard the battle that had just taken place. As Nightmare looked around, he calmed down, allowing his consciousness to take a little more control. He looked to Fury, who was now doing the same. They started running, dashing past hundreds of guards who had either been sliced to pieces or burned to a cinder. The hallways were awash with blood, covering walls and the floor, creating small pools and rivers. The two of them dashed on, ignoring all the death that surrounded them. Nightmare was leading, following a scent to Scarlett's cell. As they passed under light bulbs, his dark blue and silver fur revealed all the blood from the battle, all of it being from the guards he had mauled. Fury followed closer, her black and blood red skin glinting in the light. Whatever blood had fallen on her had run off, leaving little trace of being in a battle. They stopped outside one of the doors, hearing something move behind it. Nightmare dived at the door, lashing out with incredible speed and strength. After a flurry of blows, the door fell, and Scarlett looked out to see the two creatures. She almost screamed, but she only managed a gasp as guards appeared behind them. She watched as the feral creature breathed a jet of ghostly blue energy, causing the guards to freeze with fright. Something in her mind clicked, and it was only made true when the creature turned back to her, showing a symbol that looked like a shattered gem fragment. Somehow, she knew this creature was Highspeed, and that her prayers to escape had been answered.

Her joy of freedom was short lived, for there were now countless guards blocking their path. Nightmare and Fury's eyes widened, for each of the guards had a gaping hole, missing limb or some kind of horrific injury. Though impossible, these were the guards they had been fighting just moments before finding Scarlett. Somehow they had come back to life, and appeared to be much stronger than before. Despite the possibility the guards would come back to life after being destroyed, the two of them snarled fiercely, showing no chance of backing down from this fight. They opened their wings, flying into the endless sea of dead guards, a flurry of claws and infernos of flames raining down on them. Though these guards had been brought back to life, their second life was short lived as they were simply either burned to dust or sliced to nothing other than limbs and body parts. The fight was short, barely a blow done to Nightmare or Fury. Scarlett watched as they walked over to her. She noticed a strange glow surround the two of them, possibly changing them back to human form. Sure enough, Nightmare had become human in form, but still had fur, claws and wings. Fury had also taken human form, but still had blood red and black skin. Though they were still transforming, Highspeed said to Scarlett "Guess it's time to make our exit." He picked up Scarlett, levitating into the air with April opening her wings. The three of them flew through hallways towards the exit, still transforming back to normal. As the door came closer, Highspeed folded his wings in front of him, ploughing through the door and flying into the night. April followed close behind, as Lohan, Richard, Matt and Jamie watched in awe. A voice sounded over a communicator, a familiar voice saying _"Guess you guys missed the party. We'll meet up with you soon. Just make sure you have an exit cleared and ready for a hasty departure. It won't be long before the Old Ones are breathing down our necks,"_ and with that, the communication cut off. The four of them looked to each other, Lohan asking "If we were right here, why didn't they just come straight to us?" Matt sighed, saying with a small smile "Going by what I've heard, Highspeed rarely follows a plan. I guess he must want to explain things with Scarlett first, and then he should meet up with us again." He looked into the sky, watching Highspeed and April flying away, adding quietly "I hope."

From his current hideout, Chaos watched the moment when Highspeed, Scarlett and April escaped, joined by two other figures. One of them was made of lava and rock, a large, powerful creature. His name was Iblis, and the other was Mephiles. Chaos turned to the two of them angrily, walking towards the exit of the room. He growled _"I can't believe I underestimated them again. Even when I had them under lock and key with no hope of escape, they managed to somehow become Nightmare and Fury." _Iblis looked to him, saying "They have been quite the thorns in our side. Perhaps leading them here might prove enough to defeat them and have them as our prisoners." Mephiles looked towards Iblis, saying coldly "Didn't you hear him; he said they became Nightmare and Fury. If we bring them here then they'll treat us as little more than ragdolls you lava brained golem." Iblis looked angrily, burning hot enough to melt anything "Well what do you propose we do shadow mouth, let them walk away as free as a bird?" Mephiles glared angrily at him, telling Iblis that one more word would destroy him. Chaos thought for a moment, looking to Iblis. "Iblis is right. The two of them may have great powers, but they don't know how to use them yet. Bringing them here would give us the advantage, and we could easily beat them," and with left the room.


	6. Fury

The mist was getting thicker. That was one thing Highspeed noticed as they flew towards the harbour. Despite the fact Lohan had been right outside their prison, they knew that the power of three gatekeepers and two chosen ones would get the Old Ones attention easily. Even so, he couldn't shake the feeling something was following them, something inhuman. Though there was nothing behind them, he was sure of it, sure someone, or something, was following them. April and Scarlett could feel it too, and the moment all three looked back, a shape changer, a nightmarish combination of a man and eagle. It had what looked like a spear, aiming it right at them. Highspeed couldn't do anything while he was carrying Scarlett, and April was a little weak after the transformation to Fury. She still had the gloves, but as they gathered power, they seemed to overload, full of so much power it looked like they were about to explode. She aimed the glove, almost falling out of the sky as the electricity left her hand. The shape changer, stunned by the power April had gathered, had let this momentary lapse become his last as he fell to the lifeless city below, illuminated from within.

April looked at the glove, amazed at the power she had just unleashed. Highspeed had also seen it happen, and then looked up as the storm let out a blast of thunder, growing closer every second. April noticed it too, the three of them flying away as fast as they could. At that instant, a strong wind caught them, propelling them forward. Highspeed and Scarlett got separated, both of them being hurled by the wind as if skidding along solid ground. It was if the wind was a path, leading them somewhere they would probably never escape. The wind led them to a building, a place called the Nail. It was built to look like one, pointing down to the ground as if waiting for a giant hammer to knock it into the earth. They landed on the roof, sliding along as the wind threatened to throw them off. April took out the blade Shadowspeed had given her, stabbing it into roof. Highspeed managed to grab onto an air vent. Scarlett was about to skid right off the roof, but Highspeed managed to catch her, grabbing her hand as she slid past her. At that moment, Highspeed got the feeling he'd seen all this before. The dream he had had before he had run to Hong Kong. He had a bad feeling about how all this was going to end.

He looked over the city, barely able to see anything over the mist and storm, but yet there was a strange, black mist that seemed to linger nearby, threatening to swallow them. The wind picked up and, barely able to hold on, Highspeed lost his grip, flying towards the black mist with Scarlett. April followed soon after as the cloud started to fade. She disappeared into a void of nothingness, finally falling towards the ground when the cloud seemed to appear again. She fell on her back, rubbing her head as she got up. The first thing she had noticed as she fell was that she was in what felt like some kind of cave, everything barren and made entirely of rock. She looked around, barely able to see a thing in the darkness. She was also aware that it was freezing; the temperature from Hong Kong hadn't been warm as summer, but at least it wasn't winter cold. She made a small fireball in her hand for warmth and light. She wandered around for a few minutes, trying to find a clue as to where she was. After a while, she heard something move. She turned around, seeing a faint, fiery glow ahead of her. Her eyes widened as a jet of flames blasted towards her. She brought her wings in front of her, barely blocking the inferno launched at her. She felt the intense heat as it hit her, thinking her wings would melt. She looked to her attacker, half surprised by what she saw.

The thing that stood before her was made of lava and rock, a large creature three times her size. It had large hands, what looked like shoulder armour and a large backpack with spikes around the edge, the two behind its shoulders being the largest, made of rock. Its entire upper torso, waist, legs and arms had rock on them, with lava keeping them all together. For a head, it had a small, glowing red area where a head should be. It might have been the first time she'd seen the creature, but April knew its name. "So you're Iblis. I pictured you a little......bigger," she said sarcastically, hoping to make Iblis as angry as possible. Iblis laughed, saying with a deep, booming voice "Don't think your little plan will work. I might be made of lava, but most of the time I'm as steady.......as a rock," and as the words were spoken, he created a spiked ball of fiery rock, tossing it with one of his large hands. April leapt backwards, barely dodging the ball as it exploded on the ground. She started to get annoyed as Iblis laughed "So this is how the new Win Mai fights? I'm greatly disappointed." She leapt down, summoning a stream of water that followed her as she descended, striking Iblis in the chest. He stepped back, his fist clenched. Without knowing she could, April surrounded her fist in stone, igniting it as she dashed towards Iblis. Iblis' fist ignited, and as their fists met, an explosion rocked the cave. April leapt back as Iblis recovered. "Not bad. I must say, I underestimated you. But that doesn't mean you've won this fight," he said as he gathered as much fire as he could, firing it with such force that he was blown back as it left his hand. April outstretched her arm, catching the flames and channelling it around her. She launched it, taking Iblis off guard and almost demolishing the rock on his body.

Iblis fell to the ground with an enormous crash, melting into the ground as flames. As she watched, April smiled; pleased she had beaten something like Iblis. She turned to walk away, surprised to see a strange, black mist ahead of her. She watched as something came up from the ground in the mist, ready to run as it became clearer. She gasped, for what had come from the ground was the same person who had been there in the dream. His name burned in her mind, and she shouted it in surprise and anger. "Mephiles! What are you doing here? Hoping to get the same treatment as your pal Iblis?" Mephiles stepped forward, saying darkly and coldly "I merely came to ask you to surrender. You know there's no escape from Necropolis, so why bother trying?" "You know why. No-one would want to stay in this lifeless husk of a city _you_ created," she said angrily. Mephiles looked at her with green, emotionless eyes, his face giving nothing yet everything away. He said with a hidden tone of anger "You have tried a futile attempt to escape, and now, you will become our prisoner because of it." He raised his arms to his sides, surrounded in a dark, purple light. When it faded, he had completely transformed.

His hair had a long, dark grey stripe running across the top made of what looked like crystals. The ends of his spike hair had become sky coloured crystals, as had his fingers. He also had two black, ragged spikes coming out of his back. His feet were surrounded in a strange purple mist, and the white in his eyes had become a pinkish red, with the eyes themselves completely green. April dashed at him, striking out with punches and kicks. Mephiles countered them easily with his own kicks and punches, both of them trying to break through each other's attacks. They leapt back, Mephiles firing an orb of strange purple energy. April dodged it, striking out with a blast of electricity. Mephiles fired a blast of purple energy that sliced through the electricity. It hit April, making her yell in pain. She bent back in pain, all the painful memories of her dreams relived. Mephiles made the blast stop, causing April to fall to the ground unconscious. Behind him, Iblis materialised, saying "Nicely done. I never thought you had it in you, but I guess I have just been proved wrong." "Just because I did that doesn't mean I've forgotten my doubts about all this. Just remember that I'm not proud of doing any of this," Mephiles replied, walking over to the limp body that lay in front of him. Little did he know, striking April down would only make her stronger, and even as the blast had hit her, she was already gaining the power deep within her.

As Mephiles took a step closer to her, her eyes opened, burning with a strange pink coloured glow. She shot into the air, a strange pink energy surrounding her. Mephiles and Iblis looked up, realising it had been a mistake to defeat her. She had command over the elements fire, water, air and earth, but there was a fifth element she controlled. This was the fury element, and it was what her symbol represented, the storm of fury. She floated to the ground, her burning pink eyes glaring at them. She raised her arm, creating a sphere of fury energy around her hand. She unleashed a powerful blast that made an unworldly screech. The blast struck Iblis, causing him to melt into flames as he smashed into the cave wall. Mephiles watched as she made her way towards him, her eyes burning brighter. As she stopped in front of him, out of nowhere an army of creatures; similar to the ones April had encountered in her dream, surrounded them. She turned around, unleashing a blast at the creatures. Ten of them crept up behind her, ready to jump on her, but a blast of purple energy destroyed them easily. April looked around to, surprisingly, see Mephiles fighting the creatures. He looked her in the eye, and she understood what he meant. The two of them stood back to back, floating into the air as an orb of purple and pink energy surrounded them. The orb grew smaller until, with tremendous power, its energies were unleashed on the creatures, turning them to nothing more than dust that floated away in the breeze.


	7. Demon Awakening

The floor was cold. As Highspeed strained to use his arms to support himself, he felt an unnatural chill in the air, one that chilled him to the bone and further. He got to his feet, feeling weak from lying on the cold, stone floor. He looked around, surrounded by complete darkness. He wandered forward, hoping to find out more about where he was, even though he had a pretty good idea of that. The place was the same place as he had ended up in the dream, a dark desolate cave. He shuddered, remembering what had happened next. Sure enough, he heard a scream and noticed a light ahead of him. Despite being so weak, he sprinted towards it, creating a blast of wind as he ran. As the light grew closer, he saw someone trying to run. He recognized them instantly, readying a blast of telekinetic energy, for the two people he saw was Scarlett, and the shadowed shape of Chaos, king of the Old Ones. He leapt into the air, landing between Scarlett and Chaos, unleashing the telekinetic energy at Chaos, knocking him back.

Though he had no facial features, Highspeed could tell Chaos was smiling. Why shouldn't he be? He had one of the gatekeepers and one of the chosen ones. Chaos laughed, his voice felt like little more than a whisper, yet it was full of unworldly power "At long last, I have one of the gatekeepers in my hands, and the chosen one who has been quite the thorn in my side. This will be remembered when the Old Ones conquer the world." Highspeed growled, saying angrily "Too bad that day will never come Chaos!" and leapt towards Chaos, his arm surrounded in ghostly blue energy. His arm smashed down on Chaos as he blocked it, creating a shield of strange power. Highspeed leapt back, grabbing his staff and striking out with hard, angry blows, each one barely able to come anywhere near Chaos' head. Chaos laughed again, knocking Highspeed back as if he was nothing more than a fly. He smashed onto the ground, barely able to sit up, let alone fight. His staff skidded along the ground, stopping beside Scarlett. Chaos looked down on Highspeed, saying mockingly "So, this is the true power of Ancient. I expected a great deal more from you, but it looks like Ancient chose a pathetic child to give his powers to." Highspeed rolled onto his front bringing his fist to the ground in hopelessness. Chaos prepared a blast of black energy, aiming at Highspeed. "You may have the power over the spirits, but I doubt you can fight me as one." Highspeed closed his eyes, waiting for the inevitable, when he felt something dash past him. He looked up to see Scarlett, staff in hand, trying to smash through Chaos' shield.

Chaos looked down on Scarlett, surprised by her attack. She looked up at him, saying "You want to take over the world, but I won't let that happen!" Chaos said with a tone of surprise "My, my. The fighting spirit of Scar burns within you. But it still takes all five of you to pose a threat, and one of you.....is little more than an annoyance." He aimed at Scarlett, marvelling in her look of shock and fear as he fired. It knocked her flying across the cave, sending her smashing into a wall. "SCARLETT.......NOOOOOOO!" Highspeed shouted as she fell limply to the ground. Chaos returned his attention to Highspeed again, preparing another blast. "Don't worry, she's still alive. I will feed from her pain and suffering, and with yours, it will be a feast fit for a king of the Old Ones." The blast struck Highspeed in the chest, lifting him into the air. He looked like he was being electrocuted, the black energy spiralling around him. Chaos laughed as Highspeed yelled in pain, all his painful memories returning to him. He then felt something he had felt in the dream, Scarlett's pain. Chaos was feeding off of both of them, Scarlett's pain travelling through Highspeed. This was the mistake Chaos had made in the dream, the same he had made in times forgotten. This wasn't only gorging Chaos on human suffering, but was also awakening something so powerful that nothing could stand in its way.

The transformation had begun the moment Highspeed had yelled for the last time, the black energy engulfing him. Chaos was blown back, shocked at how all this was happening. The black energy started to fade, being absorbed by Highspeed. That was when the glow, demonic, blood red and almost blinding, appeared. His hands became claws, with long, bent, sword like claws exploding out of his knuckles. The spikes on his back seemed to explode, large spikes in an X-shape forming, the two at the top being larger. His skin turned stone-like, changing to a demonic, blood red. His hair turned the same colour, the spikes on his head becoming torn at the ends. Finally, his eyes changed to a demonic blood red, almost burning to a point of blinding. Chaos watched in horror as, right in front of him, Highspeed had become Demon, the destroyer of Old One forces. A pair of demonic looking dragon wings formed on his back, and he slowly got to his feet, walking towards Chaos. Chaos fired a blast of black energy, merely to have it deflected off of Demon's arm.

As he came within arm's reach of Chaos, he said in a low, whispering growl "Prepare to suffer," and grabbed Chaos by the throat. Chaos clawed at Demon's arm, trying to escape, but Demon threw him into the ceiling, causing large boulders to fall. Chaos laughed as he flew towards the ceiling, saying "Do you really think that will work on me. Need I show you what I can do after being released after countless millennia?" and with that, started floating, firing a blast of energy towards Demon. The blast created an explosion as it hit the ground, sending Demon into the air. He opened his wings, flying towards Chaos with extreme speed. He flew past him, turning around quickly in the air. He dived towards Chaos, bringing them both crashing to the floor. Chaos broke free, leaving Demon to hurl himself into the ground. As he crashed, a massive hole appeared in the centre of the cave. Chaos landed beside it, waiting for the dust to settle, when a demonic red claw reached out, knocking him smashing into the wall. Demon dashed towards him, closing his claw around Chaos's throat. As Chaos went limp, Demon said in his deep, unworldly growl "It may take the power of the five gatekeepers to defeat you, but do you really believe it makes you invincible," and prepared a blast of demonic, blood red energy. The blast fired, exploding into Chaos' face. As the blast created a glow that filled the room, Demon whispered _"I am the power you wish you possessed, and that struggle will leave you with your own destruction. Sorry, but you're only second rate compared to me!"_

As the glow faded, Scarlett woke up, her entire body aching after all that had happened. She looked up, seeing Demon pinning Chaos to the wall, a demonic blood red energy striking Chaos. She painfully got to her feet, taking a few steps towards Demon. She watched as the blast faded, walking closer to them. She came close enough to hear Demon say "You want to show me you're invincible, huh Chaos!" and prepared another blast. Scarlett gasped, recognising something familiar in Demon's voice. "Highspeed,STOP," she shouted, causing Demon to look around at her. As their eyes met, Scarlett almost burst into tears, horrified Highspeed had become such a monster. Seeing the fear in her eyes, Demon released Chaos, making him fall to the floor. His eyes stopped burning blood red and returned to their normal ocean blue colour. He walked over to Scarlett, tears also appearing in his eyes. Though he still looked like a monster, Scarlett rushed over, throwing her arms around him and starting to cry. _"Why does it have to be like this, all these creatures that feed on suffering?"_ she said tearfully. "I wish none of this had ever happened, and I promise, we'll stop them before they cover the world in darkness," he replied.

They heard something above them, the sound of wings flapping in the wind. They looked up through the hole a fresh hole in the ceiling, smiling as they saw April flying overhead. She shouted down to them as they flew towards her. When they came out of the cave, she commented "Any.....trouble?" "Don't even ask," Highspeed replied as they flew towards where they were to meet with Lohan, an ancient temple in the mountains. The storm had grown stronger, threatening to blow them away, but it barely even touched them, for when Scarlett had been captured, she had realized she could control the weather, and was now using it to shield them from the storm. As the temple came into view, Highspeed began to return to normal, his blood red skin and hair returning to its original state. As they came down to land, Highspeed noticed three people he just wanted to hug. There with Lohan, Matt, Jamie and Richard was Nightbird, Nightshade and Shadowspeed. As they landed, Nightbird ran over to Highspeed and hugged him, whispering _"You've changed a lot, but at least you're safe."_

Before they could finish their little reunion, the door that was their escape ticket opened, and out the two remaining gatekeepers, Scott and Pedro. Before Jamie could say anything, Scott pushed him to the ground just as a gunshot fired. The bullet had missed Jamie, but Highspeed watched in horror as the bullet hit Scarlett in the chest area, causing her to fall to the ground. Highspeed turned to the gunman, his eyes starting to burn blood red again. He grabbed him telekinetically, throwing him into the storm. He turned around, greeted by a bullet that hit him in the arm. He looked towards the second gunman, ready to grab him telekinetically, but more bullets struck him, some of them in the arms, but most of them in the chest. April and Nightbird moved forward, combining their powers to create a blast of wind and flames. The blast knocked the gunman into the air, incinerating him in the process. Highspeed finished transforming back to normal, clutching his chest where the bullets had hit him. He walked over to Scarlett and carried her to the door, his strength rapidly draining. He limped through the door, the others following. The problem was that, in all the chaos, they had never agreed on a place to meet, meaning they would be scattered across the world wherever the door left them. As Lohan pulled the door shut, it flew into the storm, smashed to pieces as the winds battered them.

From their location, Jamie, Highspeed and Scarlett, had managed to find a place to stay, Highspeed and Scarlett out as cold as ice. Jamie sat watching them, wishing that Pedro had come with them. He would have been able to heal them, but now he was probably halfway across the world. He went over to the media player Highspeed always carried with him, flicking through the songs. He found one he had heard of, playing it as Highspeed and Scarlett rested, slowly healing from the gunshots. The song he had chosen was See Who I Am by Within Temptation, and its lyrics echoed around the room _"Is it true...what they say? Are we too blind to find the way? Fear of the unknown cloud our hearts today. Come into my world. See through my eyes. Try to understand, don't want to lose, what we had. We've been dreaming, but who can deny. The best way of living, between the truth and the lie. See who I am, break through the surface. Reach for my hand. __Let's show them that we can. Free our minds and find a way. The world is in our hands, this is not the end."_


End file.
